Sept. 15, 2002 -- As the campaign for Arkansas' Senate seat hits high gear, Democratic challenger Mark Pryor and Republican incumbent Tim Hutchinson have begun attacking one another's records and accusing the other of dirty campaigning.

Pryor, the state's attorney general, recently pledged to completely oppose privatization of any section of Social Security, saying it is a federal guarantee that ought not be placed in the hands of the stock market. He also accused Hutchinson of voting for measures that called for partial privatization.

Hutchinson denied that he has ever voted to privatize Social Security, saying Pryor was distorting his record and relying on negative campaigning and scare tactics in order to gain support. The freshman senator said he had voted for a non-binding Senate resolution that called for privately investing only surplus funds.

Hutchinson criticized Pryor for not supporting President Bush's national missile defense program. The Republican argues that lack of support could affect the Patriot missile system, which is assembled at a Lockheed Martin plant in East Camden, Arkansas. Officials with the Pryor campaign contend that the national missile program has nothing to do with the Patriot missile project.

Pryor has expressed doubt as to whether a national missile system will work and whether the military itself is in favor of such a program. His campaign, however, point out the Patriot is a short-range missile designed for use in a particular theater of battle and not for national missile defense.

Hutchinson responded that the Patriot is an integral part of a national defense system because both long and short-range interceptors may be necessary to create a system that protects the continental U.S. from a missile strike.